Dates and times: Friday, March (11:30am-5:00pm) or Saturday, March 21, 2015 (9:00am-2:00pm)

Location: West Campus, Special Events Center

Overview

This symposium welcomes all college-wide Valencia faculty and staff to engage in conversations focused on the front door alignment, high impact practices, and building connections for student success. Within this collaborative community, participants will learn from their colleagues and explore innovative strategies to enhance the teaching and learning experience.

Within the symposium’s three tracks, sessions will be offered to highlight Valencia’s emerging work with curricular alignment, diagnostics and pathways, financial aid, LinC, Service Learning, internationalizing the curriculum, co-curricular engagement, MEP, CARE, and the NSE. In addition to a comprehensive overview, faculty and staff will reflect and inform strategic planning through the participation of a design challenge.

Speakers and facilitators will include Valencia President Dr. Sandy Shugart and colleagues of this emerging work.

Track 1: Front Door Alignment

Session 1: Curricular Alignment

Participants will join the Mythbusters team to learn more about the Front Door Alignment initiative and the myths and realities of the New Student Experience. Participants will leave with an understanding of their role in the FDA work and explore ways to infuse key College Success Skills into their classroom and/or learning environment.

Session 2: Diagnostics and Pathways

Participants in this session will be on a mission to unpack the language of our diverse perceptions of “pathways” and “diagnostics” as we work toward the common goal of creating tools to assist students in crafting a learning program that will lead efficiently to successful attainment of their academic goals.

Session 3: Financial Aid's Impact on Curriculum

This workshop will review how curriculum decisions such as: prerequisite course work, pending degree status and excess hours can affect the cost of a student’s education and how much financial aid will or will not cover.

Track 2: High Impact Practices

Session 1: LinC

Through the LinC (Learning in Community) initiative, Valencia faculty and staff can strategically offer courses within the new front door alignment. Doing so provides students with clearer pathways and builds community across multiple disciplines. In LinC, two or more courses are taught together with a cohort of students.

Session 2: Service Learning

Service Learning is the opportunity to join course outcomes with meaningful community service to enhance all facets of student learning. This high impact practice creates avenues for academic engagement, pre-professional exploration, civic engagement and personal growth. Come learn the what, why and how of the ways in which Service Learning can be incorporated into your practice.

Session 3: Internationalizing the Curriculum

This session will explore methods to help prepare students to live and work in an interdependent and multicultural world and develop the knowledge, skills and attitudes of a competent global citizen through curricular and co-curricular activities. It will showcase Valencia’s current best practices for Global Distinction.

Track 3: Building Connections for Student Success

Session 1: Co-curricular

What the co-curricular is happening at Valencia? Experience and learn the history and purpose of co-curricular programs at Valencia as well as the innovative opportunities currently in development for students. You’ll experience a taste of co-curricular programs, and understand how students benefit from participating

Session 2: MEP

MEP 2.0 (My Education Plan) is the latest and greatest tool for students, staff and faculty. This session will focus on the utilization of MEP in our daily work at Valencia, and demonstrate how our students are using the tool to enhance their learning experience and plan their academic journey.

Session 3: C.A.R.E

This faculty-led initiative at the College aimed at establishing a systematic process for identifying and supporting struggling students at Valencia. CARE strategies, developed by faculty, teach students the skills to self-assess their study habits EARLY in the semester. Students also learn from CARE faculty what adjustments need to be made to improve their academic performance.

NOTE: Participants can choose to attend two sessions from any of the above tracks. Both sessions don't need to be within the same track.

Agenda at a Glance

Friday, March 20, 2015

11:30: Registration and Boxed lunch

12:00: Keynote address from Dr. Shugart

12:30: Track overviews

1:15: Congruent sessions 1

2:30: Congruent sessions 2

3:30: Design challenge

5:00: Adjourn

Saturday, March 21, 2015

8:30: Registration

9:00: Keynote address from Dr. Shugart

9:30: Track overviews

10:15: Congruent sessions 1

11:30: Congruent sessions 2

12:30: Design challenge (boxed lunch provided)

2:00: Adjourn

Registration

Open registration will be available from Monday, January 12th through Friday, March 13th. Participants can click on the day they would like to attend below to be redirected to our Eventbrite registration pages. Participants will be asked to choose two sesssions when they register, provide their Valencia VID number, and choose a method of compensation if they are an adjunct instructor.

Click a day below to be directed to our Eventbrite registration page:

Compensation (see below for details)

Valencia employees can choose to attend the symposium on either March 20th or March 21st and will receive five professional development hours and a boxed lunch. Adjunct instructors, who don't have full-time roles with the college, will have the option of receiving professional development hours or a one-time payment of $125 for their participation.

Valencia College provides equal opportunity for educational opportunities and employment to all. Contact the
Office of Organizational Development and Human Resources for information.Under Florida law, e-mail addresses are public records. If you do not want your e-mail address released in response to a public records request, do not send electronic mail to this entity. Instead, contact the appropriate office by phone or in writing.